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discrimination

On Monday, Starbucks Canada closed their stores for Anti-Bias training, and I was on the radio again to speak about it; this time with Alan Neal at CBC Ottawa’s All in a Day.
What strikes me the most about conversations regarding bias is that we tend to focus on behaviours and individuals. This … [Continue reading] The Systemic Nature of Bias

PepsiCo wants to launch a Lady Doritos chip.
No, it’s not pink… But I think it says a LOT about how women are still viewed in society.
Take a look:
It’s going to be a bag that is smaller (to fit in a purse), less messy, and…wait for it….quieter! Not as crunchy – but they have promised to … [Continue reading] What a chip says about how we still view women

To be honest, today, I don’t feel like writing.
There are many things going on in the world that I could write about:
Sloane Stephens’ come-from-behind win at the US Open and how she (and other female athletes) are making much less less in sponsorship than their male counterparts.
The … [Continue reading] I Can’t Today…

A few weeks ago, President Trump decided to reinstate a ban on transgender people serving in the military. It was a blow to transgender rights, which had been creeping along in a positive direction in the US. You can read more about the details here.
The first thing that comes to mind is how some … [Continue reading] Human Rights – Who Has Them, and Who Doesn’t

Last week in Calgary, a woman was shopping for dolls for her children at Toys R Us and made a startling discovery – the “dark skinned” doll was priced lower than it’s “lighter skinned” counterpart (those are the words from the CTV new report).
Image from: … [Continue reading] Systemic Racism in many forms…even dolls!

I'm working on a project for Egale about raising awareness about the need for LGBTQ safer spaces in seniors' long term care facilities.
It's easy to think that because LGBTQ laws have changed, that all people who identify as LGBTQ are living an open, out and discrimination-free life. In general, … [Continue reading] LGBT Seniors in Long Term Care

On Friday, a judge in Quebec refused to hear a case because the woman in her courtroom was wearing a hijab.
She likened it to someone wearing a hat or sunglasses - which are not permitted. Furthermore, she is reported to have said that the woman was not "suitably dressed".
When I heard it on the … [Continue reading] Why a hijab is not a hat

I was shown this Huffington Post article on the weekend and had such a visceral reaction to it, I couldn’t finish it:
I taught my black kids that their elite upbringing would protect them from discrimination. I was wrong.
My first reaction was to shake my head in disbelief.
“Really?! How could … [Continue reading] Protection from Discrimination? Really?!